Kūmara growers developed sophisticated systems for growing and preserving a crop that was not native to New Zealand. These diagrams show the main types of rua kūmara (storage pits). They were either dug into a bank (1) or dug out in a bell shape (2). Drainage channels (3 and 4) were often added. Large pits had a pitched roof supported on poles (4 and 5). Sometimes small pits (6) were dug in the open, or inside houses and larger pits.
Using this item
Te Ara - The Encyclopedia of New Zealand
Source: Janet Davidson, Prehistory of New Zealand. Auckland: Longman Paul, 1987
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